He's Home!!

I am sooo happy!! After 12 months deployed, Rob finally came home last Friday. It feels so good to have him safe at home with me. The first night he was home we went out to Chris' Steakhouse for dinner..it is our favorite place for date night here in NC.

On the 18th, Rob and I were in the audience for a taping of the Oprah show, along with 700 other soldiers who just returned and their families. The show was about headline making heroes and Oprah used Skype to welcome them all home. We were surprised by Winona Judd coming out on stage and singing "America, the Beautiful". It was a pretty cool experience. The best part though was before the taping, one of the Oprah staff members was getting the audience ready for the show. She was making us clap and get loud, and then she asked people to go up on stage and tell stories about deploying or Fort Bragg or the Oprah show. Rob got up in front of all of those people and told the story of how we met. It embarrassed me a little because I don't like the spotlight, but it was really sweet. Anyway, the show should air on Tuesday, November 24th, so you should watch!

The last few days we have spend cleaning out our garage and *hopefully* getting ready to move. No news on that just yet..

Last night we had some friends over and I cooked dinner and we watched UFC 106. I don't like UFC, but Rob is into it. I ended up going to bed before it ended :)

Anyway, here's some pics from homecoming day and the Oprah taping. Hope you enjoy them! xo

the fridge full of beer :)

..love..
i missed him!!
sign in front of our house

Brooklyn missed Daddy soo much

oprah show

I didn't forget about my blog, I swear!!

The last few weeks have been busy, busy, busy for me, and it is only getting worse! Just about 3 weeks ago I moved back to NC to get ready for Rob's homecoming. Needless to say, I had a TON of unpacking to do, but before I could get to that my house needed to be cleaned TOP TO BOTTOM! Also, there was NO food here, so I had to go shopping. I am still in the process of unpacking LOL I hate it soooo much! In between all of that, I have been volunteering on post to help set up the barracks for the single soldiers who are returning and putting together care packages for them. Being this busy has been great for my sanity, actually.

That being said, Rob will be home SOON!!!!! Even sooner than I thought!!!! For security reasons, I can't say any more about that but I need to get a lot of stuff done, and fast. The house is a mess, Brooklyn really needs a bath, there is piles of mail all over the place..all things I know don't matter to him, but sure matter to me!

I'm really not going to stress over it though. I went to the liquor store today and stocked him up (3 different types of beer, bloody mary mix, red and white wines & kahlua..depending on his mood!) As long as the fridge is full and the welcome home signs are hung, I think we'll be good ;) Ahhh I can't believe it is finally here..almost. I have waited 12 loooong months for this, what a great feeling it is to be at the end!! =)

Some bad news...Some good news...

...The Bad News...

Two days ago, my nanny was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is 86 years old. It is hard on my family, especially my immediate family because she has been living with my parents, sister and I for the past 18 years (since my grandpa passed away). We have been very close to her and have been taking care of her, even more so these last few years. She is still active and healthy otherwise so this came as a huge shock.

I spent 4 hours at the doctor yesterday with her and my mom. The doctor wants to do a mastectomy on September 10th. She has to go through a lot of tests and get clearance from her doctors before the surgery will be possible. She got some of those done yesterday and has the rest scheduled throughout next week.

At first, she accepted it and said she would do whatever needed to be done. She even joked around that she would get double D implants. Now she is in denial and fearing the surgery a little more. My mom has decided to take her to another doctor tomorrow for a second opinion and so that nanny can hear someone else say that this is necessary.

I felt sad when we got the news, but somehow medical diagnosis and procedures seem to affect me different than most. I guess that is due to CF experiences. I just want to deal with it, take the meds, do the tests and have it be done with. I think she should get the surgery as soon as possible and not have to worry about it any more. The doctor said once the breast is removed the cancer should be gone completely. We will see what the other doctor says tomorrow.

I just ask that you please keep my nanny and my family in your thoughts and prayers. It is always difficult to get news like this and its hard to know if you are making the right decision when it comes to someone's life.


...The (sort of) Good News...

I haven't posted about this much before, but Rob and I have had difficulty trying to get pregnant. We tried for 13 months last year (in between deployments) and were unsuccessful.

Towards the end of that year of trying we started to seek help. I saw a Reproductive Endocrinologist and had some tests done on both Rob and myself. They didn't find anything, which was frustrating. The doctor wanted me to start Clomid, but because Rob was deploying, it was pointless. Needless to say, it has been very heartbreaking and difficult for us.

My periods have been VERY irregular, which makes figuring out when I ovulate nearly impossible. When I was 16, I was put on birth control pills to regulate my cycle...but now that I am trying to conceive and am more educated on the subject, I realize that BCP prevent you from ovulating altogether. I am wondering now if being on them for 7 years is affecting my fertility. Or maybe it is CF related.

The good news is that I got my period yesterday..which means I will be ovulating in 2 weeks when Rob is home for R&R!!!!

Either way, please keep your fingers crossed that next month is THE cycle for us!! There is nothing more I want out of life than to have a baby with my husband.

A little help, please??

Can't believe it's been almost a month since my last post! I guess the summer has a way of keeping us busy and making time pass much more quickly. A couple of weekends ago I was in Seaside Heights, NJ for Amy's bachelorette weekend. I had a great time with the girls - drinking, tanning & making new friends =)


In other exciting news. . . Rob leaves Iraq for R&R in 2 weeks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG I can not wait to have him here with me!!!! He has already been gone for 8 1/2 months..and they have been draggging.

Okay, so the main purpose of this post is because I need some help from my fellow CFers. I've lost over 10lbs. since last year. I haven't been sick or anything, I think the deployment has a lot to do with it..stress and such. Anyway, I need recipes, tricks, or ideas that have helped you to gain weight. Thank you all in advance, I know I can always count on you guys! xo

We're PCSing!!

For those non military friends, that means Permanent Change of Station. Rob and I will soon be saying our goodbyes to Fort Bragg, NC and moving on to a new Army post. Here is how it went down.

So I was messing around on the computer this afternoon waiting for Rob to come online like he usually does. As I was mindlessly reading statuses on my facebook pages, my phone rang. It was him. When I answered I said "Hey babe! How come you're calling??" He sort of laughed and I immediately knew something was up and I called him out on it. "Baby, what is going on??" Then he said, "I got orders." I was in shock. He then told me his orders are to Fort Benning, GA and he reports in February. As in, 7 months from now!! He won't even get home from this deployment until mid November. After he told me I was laughing and crying at the same time. I didn't know how to feel and honestly, I still don't. I am happy because it means he won't deploy for 4 years, and he will be home a lot. I am also excited to be moving to a new place and living in a different part of the country although I am nervous about it as well. It is an 18hr drive from my parents house in NY, it will mean finding all new CF doctors, and depending tremendously on Rob. I have a million questions and worries and concerns, but they will all get figured out in time. Right now I am just celebrating the thought of having Rob all to myself for FOUR years!! This is amazing!!!!!!!!

Kidney Stone Update

Sooo if you read my last post it mentioned that I've had back pain on my right side. My doctor did an x-ray and urine test to check for a kidney stone and FINALLY called back with the results. I do have one, but it's on the left side. Is that common? Rob didn't think it was unusual to have pain on the opposite side, but I'm not sure. Either way it is 4mm and my doctor said to just drink plenty of fluids for now and call her if I'm in pain (my back isn't hurting anymore right now).

Anyway, tonight we went out to dinner for my MIL's 60th birthday - Rob's parents, his brother and his wife, his sister and her husband..and me. I felt so depressed on the way home and miss him terribly. I can't wait for this stupid deployment to be over.

Sorry!!!

I have been sooo bad about posting lately!! UGH.

Well...my trip to North Carolina was exhausting. My mom had me running around for 5 days straight, but it was fun. We had dinner with my friend Hutch who just got married, my friend Sandy cooked us an awesome breakfast on Memorial Day, we went shopping, to church, got my car inspected, dentist appointment and more shopping LOL I needed a vacation when I got back, but it was nice spending time alone with my mom.

Hutch showing off his wedding ring

Me and Sandy, eating Rocky Road Choc Chip cookies I made..soooo good!
Playing Wii Bowling

Mom's turn

While we were away my dad starting completely redoing the upstairs bathroom. It will still be a couple more weeks until it is finished since he can only work on it during the weekends, but it will be soo nice. I have been helping him with that and will upload some pics soon.

The greatest thing about this week is that yesterday was 6 months since Rob deployed!! That means this deployment is half over. WOOHOO!! I am super excited and know that this half will be much easier than the first....nicer weather, midtour leave, my best friend's wedding (& shower & bachelorette party) plus the overall feeling that we are in the end stretch. It is great to get past the halfway mark!!!!!!!


As for my health, the past two days haven't been great. I've been coughing up blood which has been happening a lot these past few months. I see my doctor on Wednesday so I will see what she has to say then.

Tomorrow is the Great Strides walk. I am excited because my team did great fundraising, but disappointed because a lot of my family isn't showing up this year. I know it will be a great day anyway. Will post more about that tomorrow.

Lonely

I talked to Rob twice today, which is more than usual, but I can't help feeling lonely tonight. I try to keep busy with friends, family, work..but at the end of the day I am ALONE. I miss my husband terribly. Everything I do, I wish that he was sharing it with me. When we talked today we discussed our plans for when he comes home. A trip to Italy to visit my family, finishing work in the house and yard, and of course plenty of time just relaxing together. We talk incessantly about starting a family. We both wish we had kids already..but these deployments keep getting in the way. I feel like we are constantly fantasizing about our future, but never really getting the chance to live it. By the time this is over, Rob will have been deployed for 27 months out of the 40 we will be married. That is more than half of our 3 year marriage. I am just so sick of sitting around and waiting. I don't want my life to be on hold any more. I don't want my best friend missing out on everything. Sometimes it is just so HARD. And having CF makes it even harder. I try to live every day to the fullest, but how can I do that when half of me is missing?? My life expectancy is already shortened, and deployments just take more of my precious time away. UGHH..sorry for ranting. We've survived one deployment already and I know we will get thru this one, too. Sometimes it just makes it easier getting it all out. Does anyone else feel like their life is on hold or they aren't where they hoped they would be? How do you deal?

The day he deployed .. 12/08

Friday Fun

Today is Military Spouse Appreciation Day so I would like to wish all my fellow Military Wives a great day and say thank you because I know first hand how hard it is some days. Spouses don't get nearly enough credit for the sacrifices we make every day. We are constantly giving of ourselves, taking on roles and tasks that are typically shared by both spouses, raising children, managing homes, cars & bills, and we spend a lot of time being lonely and worrying about our significant other. As hard as it all is, it is VERY rewarding when we do get to be back with our spouses and it makes it all WORTH IT. So to all the spouses out there, especially ones going through a deployment..THANK YOU..and please do something for yourself today. As for me, I treated myself to a Dunkin Donuts Iced Caramel Latte and had a great webcam date with the hubby =)








Also, I found this ad on AOL this morning about Free Chocolate Fridays from the
Mars company. All you have to do is go to realchocolate.com and fill out your info and they will mail you a coupon for a free chocolate bar!!! woohoo Who doesn't LOVE chocolate!!!! Plus it is free..and you can get a coupon every Friday until September!




Tonight I went over to my best friend Amy's house and we had dinner and watched Bride Wars. It was a cute movie even though I don't particularly enjoy chick flicks. She is getting married in September and I am the maid of honor, so it was fitting.

First Attempt

Well, I've never blogged before. I am hoping this will be a good way to keep in touch and let people know what is going on with Rob, me, and of course our dog, Brooklyn.

We seem to be all over the place sometimes, so maybe this will help everyone keep up!! Right now Rob is in Baghdad & Brooklyn and I are living with my parents in New York. All three of us miss our home and friends in the Fayetteville/Fort Bragg area and can't wait to be back in November!!!!!! This is our second deployment - five months down, seven more to go.